Mature‑node chip prices rising
Chinese analogue and mature‑node chipmakers are joining a global wave of price increases, pushing up costs for legacy components that many devices still rely on. The inflationary move could squeeze margins on lower‑tier Apple parts and complicate procurement for Fremont’s assembly lines. (scmp.com)
Novosense Microelectronics, SG Micro, Fortior Technology, Halo Microelectronics, Silan Micro and Kiwi Instruments are among the Chinese analogue houses that announced price adjustments alongside global peers such as Texas Instruments, Analog Devices, NXP, Infineon, onsemi and STMicroelectronics. (scmp.com) Texas Instruments has notified customers of product‑specific price uplifts that can reach as much as 85% on selected lines effective in April, while Analog Devices enacted broad increases starting Feb. 1 and NXP set selective adjustments for April 1. (scmp.com) Reports show mature‑node foundries including UMC, Vanguard International Semiconductor (VIS), Powerchip and China’s Nexchip are eyeing quote increases up to about 10% from April, tightening contract wafer pricing at legacy nodes. (trendforce.com) China’s SMIC ended 2025 with roughly 1.06 million 8‑inch wafer equivalents of monthly logic capacity and an average utilisation rate around 93.5%, signaling limited slack in mature‑node supply even as more capacity comes online. (scmp.com) Industry trackers estimate analog IC price moves in 2026 are commonly in the 10–30% range for product families, with OSAT packaging and test surcharges rising roughly 8–20%, a combination that has already forced OEMs to model higher BoM costs. (siliconanalysts.com) Counterpoint Research quantified BoM pressure in Q1 2026 as pushing memory and component cost shares sharply higher—entry‑level smartphone BoMs rose over 20% QoQ in one sample—which underscores why component repricing has immediate margin impact for consumer device lines. (counterpointresearch.com) Apple told investors that iPhone revenue in the March quarter could have been higher if the company had secured more chips, reflecting ongoing procurement stress, and trade reporting says TSMC has informed major clients about fabrication cost rises in 2026 (advanced‑node hikes in the mid‑single digits and higher early‑node premiums for bleeding‑edge nodes). (cnbc.com) China Micro Sem has publicly sized recent MCU and NOR price increases in the range of roughly 15–50% for affected SKUs, while foundry consolidation moves such as planned 8‑inch line rationalisations by major players are being flagged as additional upward pressure on legacy‑node availability. (digiconasia.net)
